Directions
• As you go through the PowerPoint,
answer the questions on your guide.
• For every problem in which Otto von
Bismarck takes your advice, give
yourself 15 points. Tally these points up
at the end of the PowerPoint to learn
your “fate.”
Background Information
• The story of German unification is rooted in
the Napoleonic era. Napoleon’s domination
of large parts of Germany not only increased
the demand among German patriots for the
creation of a unified nation, but also reduced
the number of independent German states
from 300 during the Holy Roman Empire to
38. The only question is which state would
lead the German Unification- Prussia or
Austria?
The German Confederation,
After the Congress of Vienna, 1815
Europe in 1861
1848 Revolution & the Frankfurt
Parliament- attempted unification
• When artists and factory workers in
Berlin exploded in March of 1848 and
joined middle-class liberals, Frederick
William IV of Prussia promised a liberal
constitution and to merge Prussia into a
new nationalist German state that was
to be created.
• Meeting in Frankfurt, the National
Assembly of self-appointed liberals met
to draw up a constitution. They elected
King Frederick of Prussia as the
emperor of the new German state.
However, he had successfully put down
the revolts elsewhere. He disbanded
the Assembly.
1848 Failure to Unite Germany
Reasserting that he had divine right,
Frederick William refused to
accept a crown “from the gutter,”
meaning the common people.
Bogged down with their nationalist
issues the revolutionaries waited
too long and acted too timidly.
• Frederick tried to establish the
Erfurt Union of German states,
but Russia and Austria forced
Prussia to renounce all schemes
of unification in 1850.
Zollverein
• Prussia became the leading force in German
unification with its formation of the Zollverein.
• It formed these German custom unions in
1834. These unions eliminated tolls and
stimulated trade among members.
• Austria was excluded from membership,
thereby allowing Prussia to achieve greater
economic prosperity, while Austria remained
agricultural.
Zollverein, 1834
Kaiser Wilhelm I
• It is now the year 1861.
Upon taking the throne
of Prussia, Kaiser
Wilhelm I (1861-1888)
has just made the most
important decision of
his life- he selected Otto
von Bismarck as his
Prime Minister.
Otto von Bismarck
• Born as a Prussian Junker, the
landowning aristocracy, young
Bismarck was a wild student
given to duels and drinking.
Proud of his Junker heritage and
always devoted to Prussia,
Bismarck has a strong
personality and unbounded
desire for power. Now that he is
the Prime Minister of Prussia,
Bismarck is asking your advice
on the best steps to take to
ensure the power of Prussia and
to unite the German people.
Challenge #1: The Prussian
Parliament
To challenge Austrian supremacy in the
German Confederation (the loose group of
German states formed by the Congress of
Vienna) Kaiser Wilhelm I has asked Bismarck
to pass military reforms through the
Parliament. Parliament, however, is filled
with the liberal middle class who does not
want to spend their tax money on increasing
the size of the already large Prussia army.
Challenge #1 Options
Bismarck is asking for your advice in dealing
with Parliament. These are the choices he
has laid before you…
Option 1: Meet with the middle class liberal leaders and
try to persuade them individually to agree to assist
the Kaiser.
Option 2: Dissolve the Parliament and create one that
has a greater majority of your supporters.
Option 3: Ignore the decisions of Parliament and spend
tax collections on the army.
Option 1
Option 2
Option 3
Option 1: Meet with the Middle
Class Liberal Leaders 1:
• Bismarck believes that you have a weak
disposition, which is very unlike the
strong Prussian he believed you were to
be. He believes that government can
rule without Parliaments consent.
• You receive 0 points for this decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Option 2: Dissolve the Parliament
Bismarck is happy to see that you agree with
him that “might makes right” and that
demonstrating to the Prussian parliament that
they are can be fired would be a strong
statement. However, the middle-class
Prussian people are proud of their say in the
representative system. Therefore, he
believes that this could be causing a
revolution to take place.
• You receive 0 points for this decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Option 3: Ignore the Decisions of
Parliament
Bismarck agrees with you that this is the best
option. It would clearly cause a revolution
amongst the Russia people if you dissolved
Parliament. Therefore, by ignoring them you
may still may be able to get what you want.
• You will receive 15 points for your decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Challenge #1: What Really
Happened
• To break the impasse, first Bismarck delivered his famous
“Iron and Blood” speech in which he said, “Germany is not
looking to Prussia’s liberalism but to her power. The great
questions of our time will not be decided by speeches and
majority resolutions-that was the mistake of 1848-49- but
by iron and blood.”
• Despite the colorful speech, Parliament still refused to vote
in favor of the military budget. Bismarck simply ignored
them and collected the taxes and implemented the
reforms. To their great discredit, the Prussian liberals did
nothing to oppose this blatant disregard for their authority.
• The money has allowed Wilhelm to increase the size of the
military and equip them with the newest weapons of the
Industrial Revolution.
The Danish War
• The Prussian voters were not unaware of your
overriding the interests of Parliament. They have
continued to vote in more liberals. So, success
abroad will help Bismarck to gain Prussian support.
Thankfully, the Danes (from the country of
Denmark) have provided the opportunity. The
Danish king has tried to take the duchies of
Schleswig and Holstein and incorporate them into
Denmark- despite the objections of Germans in
these areas.
• Bismarck persuaded the Austrians to join in the war.
With the Danish defeat, Austria received Holstein
and Prussia Schleswig.
The Danish
War
[1864]
Challenge #2: Austria in the
North
• Bismarck is convinced that Prussia must have
control of the northern, predominately
Protestant part of the German Confederation,
which would mean expelling Austria from
German affairs. He seeks your advice on the
best manner to get rid of the Austrian
influence:
Option 1: Popular Suffrage have the peoples of
Holstein vote on whether or not to enter the
Prussian state.
Option 2: Risk War with Austria:
Option 1
Option 2
Option 1: Popular Suffrage
Bismarck thinks that you are nuts! You
are already struggling to fight with the
middle class liberals who have the right
to vote- the last issue he wants to deal
with is liberal suffrage in Holstein.
• You receive 0 points for this decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Option 2: Risk War with
Austria:
A man of action, Bismarck agrees with
you that this is the best course to
pursue. He knows that it would be a
localized conflict that would not provoke
a mighty alliance against Prussia.
You receive 15 points for your decision
Back
What Really
Happened?
Challenge #2: What Really
Happened?
• After securing an alliance with Italy (who
wanted to see the removal of Austrians from
their territories) and securing a promise of
non-participation from the French- Prussia
declared war on Austria, citing a petty dispute
over the governance of Holstein as the
reason for attack. The modernization
program undertaken by the Prussia army
proved to be astonishingly successful;
allowing from a quick Austrian defeat.
Step #2: Austro-Prussian War
[Seven Weeks’ War], 1866
Prussia
Austria
North German Confederation
• After the defeat of the
Austrians, Bismarck
annexed those small
German states in the north
that had supported Austria in
the conflict. Other northern
German states were
convinced to join Prussia in
the creation of what became
known as the North German
Confederation.
• Anticipating Prussia’s future
needs, Bismarck offered
Austria a generous
peace…they paid no
reparations and lost no
territory outside of Holstein.
Challenge #3: Unification with
Southern German States
Bismarck believes that by creating a patriotic war
against France the Germans in the south may join
Prussia. An opportunity may have arisen now that a
kinsman of the Prussian king was invited to take the
vacant throne of Spain. To Napoleon III, the emperor
of France, having two Hohenzollern leaders on two
fronts was too much to contemplate. This conflict
could lead to the war Bismarck is looking for.
Unfortunately, Wilhelm I, king of Prussia, has given
Napoleon III a diplomatic victory by agreeing to
withdraw his cousin’s name as a potential leader of
Spain. Bismarck is infuriated at the weak leadership
and still wants a war with France…
Challenge #3: Unification with
Southern German States
Bismarck comes to you for advice about how to
approach the settlement over the Spanish thrown…
Option 1: Do Nothing- The Kaiser has already decided
to withdrawal his cousin’s name. Another opportunity
to war with France will arise soon.
Option 2: Attack France- Rather than wait for a reason,
simply attack the French.
Option 3: Insult the French into War- Manipulate the
diplomatic situation so that the Kaiser changes his
stance on the Spanish throne, promoting a war with
France.
Option 1
Option 2
Option 3
Option 1: Do Nothing
• Bismarck does not know if there will be
another opportunity to war with the
French soon. The opportunity for
German unification could be
lost…therefore, doing nothing is not an
option.
• You receive 0 points for this decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Option 2: Attack France2:
Bismarck would like nothing better, but
believes that unification can only occur
if the French declare war on Prussia
first. Therefore, he cannot choose this
option.
You receive 0 points for this decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Option 3: Insult the French into
War
• Bismarck agrees with you that the
French must attack Prussia, in order to
ignite the nationalist feelings necessary
for German unification.
• You receive 15 points for this decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Challenge 3: What Really
Happened?
• Bismarck, who desperately wanted war, rewrote the so-called “Ems Dispatch” a
telegram sent by the Prussian king to
Bismarck informing him of what had
transpired in the conversation between the
king and a French ambassador, to make it
appear as though the king had insulted
France. Bowing to he demands of an
outraged French public, Napoleon III declared
war on Prussia.
Franco-Prussian War
[1870-1871]
German soldiers “abusing”
the French.
French Defeat
• As soon as war against France began in 1870,
Bismarck had the wholehearted support of the south
German states. With other governments standing
still- Bismarck’s generosity to Austria in 1866 had
paid off- German forces defeated the French at
Sedan. Napoleon III was captured and humiliated.
After his capture, French patriots proclaimed the
Third Republic in Paris & continued to fight. After a
five month siege (in which the rebels were starving
and forced to eat rats & animals from the Parisian
zoo) they surrendered.
Challenge 4: The Treaty with
France
Bismarck had given the Austrians an easy
peace, when they were defeated in the
Austro-Prussian War…what should the treaty
terms be with the French?
Option 1: An Easy Peace- by taking it easy on
the French, you have a potential ally in the
future.
Option 2: Make them Pay- you have soundly
defeated the French- they now owe Germany
territory and reparations.
Option 1
Option 2
Option 1: An Easy Peace
• Bismarck thinks you are being a wimp! He
believed that a gentle peace was necessary
with the Austrians, only because they were
necessary for German Unification. Now that
unification is secure, and the German people
excited over the French defeat, he believes
the time is right to reap the spoils.
• You receive 0 points for this decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Option 2: Make them Pay!
Bismarck agrees that with German
nationalism so strong and having no
use for good relations with the French, it
is time to reap the benefits of German
militarism.
You receive 15 points for your decision.
Back
What Really
Happened?
Challenge 4: What Really
Happened?
• By the time of the French defeat, the
German states in the south had agreed
to join a new German empire. The
victorious Wilhelm I was proclaimed
emperor of Germany in the palace of
Versailles.
Coronation of Kaiser Wilhelm I
[r. 1871–1888]
Challenge 4: What Really
Happened?
• Bismarck imposed a harsh peace on France. France
was forced to pay 5 billion francs to Germany and
surrender the rich eastern provinces of Alsace and
Lorraine to Germany.
• The French considered the seizure of this area a
crime and would never forget nor forgive German
aggression. Relations between France and Germany
were tragically spoiled.
• As a result of the war, the Second French Empire
collapsed and Napoleon III was out of power.
• The unification of Germany greatly upset the balance
of power and would lead to intense rivalry amongst
European powers- thus leading to World War I.
Age of Realpolitick
• Bismarck’s political tactics were in direct
contrast to Metternich’s during the Concert of
Europe. Bismarck based his political
maneuvers on the “realpolitick” philosophy. It
refers to politics or diplomacy based primarily
on practical considerations, rather than
ideological notions like conservatism. The
term realpolitik is often used to imply politics
that are Machiavellian since political leaders
would use any means possible, like war and
manipulation, to achieve their goals.
Your Fate
0-15 points: If you received this low of a score,
Bismarck has fired you. He can see that you are not
only lacking in political savvy, but also questions your
German nationalism.
30-45 points: Bismarck is pleased with your advice.
After German unification he appoints you to a high
level in the new German government.
60 points: You have done such an exceptional job, and
clearly possess the skills of a “realpolitick” that
Bismarck believes you are a threat. Therefore, he
sends you out of Germany to work as an ambassador
in the distant Micronesian islands in the Pacific
Ocean.
FRQ:
Write an introductory paragraph and thesis
statement for the FRQ below.
FRQ: Compare and contrast the foreign policy
goals and achievements of Metternich (18151848) and Bismarck (1862-1890).